The
Protection Paradox Debated in Greenland |
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The Greenland
newspaper
Sermitsiak on March 26, 2004,
carried a large article about
The Protection Paradox which included
comments from Greenlandic politicians. The
article, which was printed in West Greenlandic
and Danish, is translated and reprinted (with
permission) below (a full copy can be downloaded
to the right):
Thule
Radar Important Nuclear Target
New
article shows that radar facilities are important
targets in nuclear planning against missile
defenses. The Thule radar is expected to be
upgrade next year
By Poul
Krarup
Sermitsiak
March 26, 2004
pp. 12-13
The
American radar at the Thule-base will likely
become an important target for Russian nuclear
weapons when it next year is incorporated into
the U.S. missile defense system.
This
appears from a new article in the U.S. magazine
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, which for the
first time reveals how the United States planned
nuclear attacks against a Russian missile defense
system.
"Although
Thule has probably been a nuclear target since
the 1950s, this status will likely be reinforced
when the base becomes part of the U.S. missile
defense system," according to Hans M.
Kristensen who is the lead author of the article.
He is former member of the Danish Defence
Commission, and a consultant to the U.S.
organization Natural Resources Defense Council in
Washington D.C.
The
article is based on previously secret documents
recently declassified under the U.S. Freedom of
Information Act.
Important
Targets
The documents reveal that the U.S.
military during the Cold War designated over 100
long-range nuclear missiles to the destruction of
the Soviet missile defense around Moscow and
Leningrad. The article shows that all parts of
the Soviet missile defense system -- even distant
early-warning radar -- were targets for the
American nuclear weapons.
The
article is available on the web page of the
magazine:
http://www.thebulletin.org/issues/2004/ma04/ma04kristensen.html
The
authors have used computer programs from the U.S.
Defense Department to calculate how the many
nuclear weapons would have caused radioactive
fallout over Moscow and large parts of its
surrounding areas.
Individual
targets would have been hit with up to eight
nuclear weapons each.
"It
was a surprise to that all elements of the
missile defense system were targets and not just
the interceptors," says Hans M. Kristensen.
"The material suggests that large nuclear
powers are very aware of the effect that even a
limited missile defense system can have on the
effectiveness of their nuclear strike
plans."
Danish
Assumption Not Valid
The American and Danish governments have
stated that the future U.S. missile defense
system will not worry Russia and China or lead to
further armament. The article in the Bulletin of
Atomic Scientists suggests that this assumption
is not valid, but that missile defense systems
have a dramatic effect on offensive nuclear
planning.
Nuclear
planning against missile defense systems continue
even today despite warmer relations between the
U.S. and Russia.
The White
House has not yet ordered the military to stop
such Cold War-type nuclear planning, and much
suggests that the future U.S. missile defense
system already is part of Russia's nuclear
planning, says Hans M. Kristensen.
The U.S.
government is expected later in 2004 to declare
the first elements of the missile defense system
operational in Alaska and California.
Initially
the system will consist of 10 silos with
interceptors and later increase to 100 silos as
well as sea-based systems. The Thule-radar will
be modernized as part of the missile defense
system.
Thule
Joins in 2005
As for when the Thule-radar is
modernized, then it seems it will happen next
year. Earlier this month Lt. Gen. Ronald Kadish,
who is director of the U.S. Missile Defense
Agency, said: "We are continuing our
consultations with Denmark regarding the upgrade
of the Thule radar site in Greenland."
Underlying
this careful statement, which is based on the
Danish Parliament's decision in 2003 to begin
negotiations with the United States, is the
expectation that an approval will come from
Denmark in 2004 so that the modernization ban
begin next year. The new U.S. defense budget for
2005 includes "funding to begin upgrading
the Early Warning Radar in Thule,
Greenland."
The work
in 2005 involves: "Initiates and completes
site facility designs for Thule UEWR."
###
The
Security Political Situation Is Different
Member of
homerule Josef Motzfeldt dismisses that Pituffik
[Thule] is a nuclear target today
By Poul
Krarup
Sermitsiak
March 26, 2004
p. 12
- The
article about Pituffik [Thule] being a nuclear
target shows how crazy the nuclear logic was in
the 1960s. That both sides planned to destroy to
the greatest extent possible on the other side,
including defense systems, if one of them decided
to attack, evaluates member of the homerule Josef
Motzfeldt.
- As far
as I can see, the authors have, based on some
documents from 1968 -- which are frightening
enough in themselves -- calculated how many
nuclear weapons U.S. planners would use if a
situation arose in 1989 in which the U.S. was
attacked with nuclear weapons and therefore also
would defend itself with nuclear weapons. We can
obviously only be happy that the plans from 1968
never were carried out, that the by the authors
envisioned situation in 1989 didn't happen, and
that the Cold War ended with the fall of the
Berlin Wall, he says.
- Today's
security political situation is different. The
regional conflicts, for example in the Middle
East and terrorism are serious enough, but there
is not a direct conflict between the United
States and Russia, like the one that existed
between the the United States and Russia during
the Cold War. The U.S. and Russia have for
example in the Putin-Bush agreement from May 2002
agreed to cooperate on missile defense. There is
also no sign that China will begin reactions of
the nature that characterized the Cold War
between the U.S. and Russia, Josef Motzfeldt
believes.
The United
States requested in December 2002 that the
Pituffik [Thule] radar be upgraded.
The
Homerule and the [Danish] government have since
summer 2003 negotiated with the United States
based on a joint Greenland-Danish proposal for
negotiations to renew the [1951] defense
agreement, an environmental agreement, and an
agreement about techno-economical cooperation. A
united Homerule parliament has supported the
proposal.
Homerule
chairman Hans Enoksen and [Danish] foreign
minister Per Stig Moeller agreed in connection
with the signing of the Itilleq-agreement in May
2003, that these negotiations much be completed
with the intention of reaching agreement on the
deals, before an upgrade of the Pituffik [Thule]
radar can take place.
- That is
also the policy of the current Homerule,
established in accordance with an unanimous
Homerule Parliament, says Josef Motzfeldt and
adds:
- We now
seek to complete the negotiations as fast a
possible, given the complicated issues involved,
and there many calendars that must be
coordinated. I can't obviously predict if this
will result in a positive or negative reply to
the United States -- then it wouldn't be
negotiations.
Do you
fear that the United States will move the base to
Canada if the reply is negative?
- I am not
familiar with the U.S. wanting to move the
Pituffik [Thule] base to Canada. That would in
any case be the U.S.'s own decision. The
Pituffik-based has advantages and disadvantages
for the Greenland society. The negotiations on a
renewal of the defense agreement, the
environmental agreement and the techno-economical
cooperation agreement envision that the U.S.
presence at Pituffik-base much give a positive
contribution to the Greenland society, says Josef
Motzfeldt.
###
The Danger of
Upgrading
Greenland must say no to an
upgrade, if the American's won't pay, believes
member of parliament Lars-Emil Johansen
By Poul Krarup
Sermitsiak
March 26, 2004
p. 13
- The article about Pituffik
[Thule] being a nuclear target clearly shows that
Denmark consistently has underestimated the
danger to Greenland from a possible upgrade, says
member of parliament Lars-Emil Johansen who adds
that [Danish] Foreign Minister Per Stig Moeller
even has tried previously to belittle the
Greenlandic claims about the risk of becoming a
nuclear target.
- It also shows how
incredibly important it is that Greenland stands
form on its demands -- as compensation for the
increased risk that Greenland alone must
shoulder. The issue has such important
significance for Qaanaaq in particular and
Greenland in general that the Homerule chairman
simply cannot be allowed to hand down the matter
to one of his ministers, but must at a minimum
participate himself in the handling of the future
negotiations.
- Matters like this must in
other word be handled by the highest level of the
Greenlandic government, and may in the end mean
that Greenland will have to say no to the U.S.
wishes to upgrade the Thule radar for use in the
missile defense, if the U.S. continue to
"entertain" us with [the argument] that
they "normally" don't pay for the
rights the want to gain in other countries, and
the contributions they want others to provide for
their benefit, says Lars-Emil Johansen, who is
very displeased with the Danish policy toward
Greenland in this area.
- As I have previously
pointed out in an op-ed in Sermitsiak and
Weekendavisen, a possible acceptance now will be
the first time Greenland itself accepts. To that
end it is completely unacceptable that Denmark
constantly deceives the Greenlandic negotiators
about the actual dangers from Pituffik [Thule] in
order to get Greenlandic acceptance for the
benefit of Denmark.
- It is also completely
unacceptable that we must be depending on the
U.S. Freedom of Information Act to be told what
actually is the truth about the use of Pituffik
[Thule], while Denmark constantly withholds and
twists the truth for us and only tells it when
they are forced to by disclosures in the United
States.
Lars-Emil Johansen believes
that Greenland would be better off negotiating
directly with the United States and says:
- The United States appears
at all levels to be more honest about Pituffik
[Thule] than Denmark is, and the U.S. appears to
constantly be forced by Denmark to play dumb
toward Greenland.
Lars-Emil Johansen finds it
discouraging again to see how Danish governments
apparently pursue their own goals at the expense
of the Greenlandic people.
- Denmark's governments
withholds the truth as well as the risk about the
Thule-base as well as those interests they
actually work to pursue -- that is, purely Danish
political gains in the relations with the U.S.,
NATO, and the UN, says the member of parliament.
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